This invention relates to a wet-type magnetic ore separation apparatus and more particularly, to a wet-type magnetic ore separation apparatus adapted to separate a magnetic material component from a non-magnetic material component in a charge of granular ore material by the utilization of magnetic force.
Conventional magnetic ore separation has been generally performed by either (1) a method in which a number of iron balls are disposed between magnetic poles to generate lines of magnetic force in a reticulate pattern and a charge of granular ore material is caused to flow down through the lines of magnetic force whereby the iron balls collect the magnetic material component from a granular ore material or (2) the method in which a belt or chain having a number of iron pieces secured thereto is passed through the magnetic field provided by an electromagnetic coil to magnetize the iron pieces and a charge of ore material is passed through the magnetic field whereby the magnetized iron pieces collect the magnetic material component from the ore material. In addition to the above-described ore separation methods, there are many other ore separation methods which are known and employed in practice. In the ore separation method (1) referred to hereinabove, the iron balls employed are preferably as small as possible so that they can be easily handled. However, the reduction of the diameter of the iron balls causes difficulties in processing and the practical use of small iron balls. When the iron balls have an extremely small diameter, ore material cannot flow down easily between the iron balls because the balls leave very restricted clearances or no clearances therebetween. Thus, the minimum practical diameter of the iron balls is about 6 mm and if the diameter of the iron balls is less than 6 mm, the magnetic material component in the granular ore material which is attracted to the iron balls cannot be easily removed from the iron balls.
In the conventional wet-type ore separation method, since a charge of ore material is caused to flow down between magnetic poles together with an amount of water to make it possible to collect the magnetic material component from the ore material, the falling speed of the water is high and the falling water tends to wash away the magnetic material component which has been previously attracted to and deposited on the magnetic poles or to prevent some of the magnetic material component which has a lower magnetism than that of the rest of the magnetic material component from being attracted to the magnetic poles. Furthermore, since the ore separation operation is performed while the ore material and water are falling down between the magnetic poles, the falling speed of the ore material and water varies along the path thereof defined by the magnetic poles. And since the falling ore material and water partially fill the clearances between the magnetic poles, but do not completely fill the clearances, some of the magnetic poles tend to fail to attract the magnetic material component in the ore material resulting in lowering of the ore separation efficiency. Furthermore, when the magnetic force provided by the magnetic poles is impractically high, only the magnetic poles positioned in the upper portion of the path of the falling ore material and water attract the magnetic material component in the ore material and the rest of the magnetic poles positioned in the portions of the path lower than the upper magnetic poles attract hardly any of the magnetic material component resulting in lowering of the ore separation efficiency.